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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. rash — hasty
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. stem — to come from
  5. current — of water
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. current — electric
  10. cap — a hat
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. ground — the earth
  13. current — happening now
  14. sharp — clever
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. ground — crushed
  17. cap — of ice
  18. rash — a series
  19. cap — a lid
  20. ground — a position
  21. press — to push
  22. press — newspapers
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. racket — for tennis

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com